Bush's Faith-Based Initiatives Launched

More of this Feature • Part 2: Church, State & Supreme Court • Part 3: Executive Order - Creating White House Office • Part 4: Executive Order - Agency Roles    Join the Discussion "Our rights were not lost, our rights were upheld in banning school prayer." WALLACE148     Related Resources • Status of Faith-Based Initiative • Church and State • Religion & Our Founders • School Prayer • The 6 Commandments    From Other Guides • Restricting Religious Freedom • Cut to the Chase • Not a Prayer • When Church & State Collide • Charitable Choice is Often Neither • Bush v. Constitution    Elsewhere on the Web • ACLU • Americans United • On the 1st Amendment • America's Real Religion

Current Status of Faith Based Legislation
You will not be able to apply for assistance under the Faith-Based Initiative until a bill creating the program and providing for funding is passed by Congress and signed by President Bush. Keep up with progress of the bill here.

Dateline: 01/30/01

As he promised during the campaign, President Bush launched his "faith-based" initiative on Monday by establishing a White House office to assist and encourage faith-based organizations is seeking federal funds to combat problems like drug addiction and homelessness.

In a first executive order, Bush created the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community Initiatives. University of Pennsylvania political science professor John Dilulio was named as the head of the new office.

A second related order relieved regulations within the departments of Justice, Housing and Urban Development, Health and Human Services, Labor and Education which, according to the President, made it difficult for private organizations from seeking federal funds.

In a White House announcement, President Bush stated, "It is one of the great goals of my administration to invigorate the spirit of involvement and citizenship. We will encourage faith-based and community programs without changing their mission. We will help all in their work to change hearts while keeping a commitment to pluralism."

Fending off criticism that the new White House office violated separation of church and state as provided for in the "establishment clause" of the 1st Amendment to the Constitution, the Bush Administration assured that use of federal funds for religious purposes will not be allowed.

"It can fund the soup, it can fund the shelter. It shouldn't fund the Bibles, and I think if we maintain that division, we'll be in the right place," stated former Indianapolis Mayor Steve Goldsmith. President Bush has selected Goldsmith to oversee the AmeriCorps volunteer program and to assume a leadership role in assisting faith-based organizations.

Faith-Based Tax Deduction Legislation
President Bush will also announce new legislation on Tuesday that will allow all taxpayers to deduct donations to charitable organizations. 

Under the current tax law, some 80 million taxpayers who claim the standard deduction, rather than filing itemized deductions, are prevented from deducting charitable donations.

In offering the legislation to change this law, the Bush Administration suggests that allowing all taxpayers to claim charitable contributions will encourage billions of dollars in new donations to local public service organizations, thus reducing dependence on the federal government.

The new legislation will also create state tax credit to be extended to charities that directly address poverty. The tax credit will also extend to private corporations making efforts to fight poverty.

The faith-based initiatives announced this week are part of Bush's promised administration of "compassionate conservatism," dedicated to continuing and extending social service programs through local, rather than federal government involvement.

Opposition to Bush's faith-based initiatives has come from organizations including the American Civil Liberties Union and Americans United for Separation of Church and State. Both organizations have stated that the initiative represents an unconstitutional merging of church and state.

The First Amendment to the Constitution states, in full: "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the government for a redress of grievances." (Emphasis added to the establishment clause.)

Many times in the past, the U.S. Supreme Court has interpreted the meaning and intent of the establishment clause of the the 1st Amendment and the separation of church and state.

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